Great characters, good read.

I always felt out of the loop for having not read Empire Falls, the Pulitzer winner of 2002 that received thunderous critical acclaim. I'm pleased to now be up to speed and to know what all the fuss is about! Having said that, Russo's book gets off to a slow start; its prologue is exceedingly dull and the first 150 pages feature unlikable characters introduced in a chaotic fashion combined with chapters of extended flashbacks. Had I not said to myself, "I know this has to get better," I would have probably given up. However, I'm certainly glad I persevered as the plot becomes engaging, the dialogue turns realistic and understatedly hilarious, and the relationships among the characters grow in complexity and tenderness. At the centre, protagonist Miles Roby remains troubled, exasperating, genuine and completely relatable. The 500 page novel deals with an impressive array of social issues from childhood hurts to economics (the title becomes literal as an Empire indeed falls) to small town mentality to the importance of following one's dreams. And the shocking, rather disturbing ending reveals both the hatred and the love of which humans are capable. Ultimately, the novel has a lot in common with the town it depicts: both are quirky, unpretentious and full of desire. After all, the omniscient narrator asks, "what was the whole wide world but a place for people to yearn for their heart's impossible desires, for those desires to become entrenched in defiance of logic, plausibility and even the passage of time, as eternal as polished marble?"

Love this book! One of Russo's best!

Richly developed characters make for an enjoyable read.

Winner of the 2002 Pulitzer prize for fiction.